Who is Whispering in Your Ear? | Rabbi Naftali Horowitz

Each morning, we wake up and the first thing we recite in our blessings is the thank you for the power of sight, in the Bracha of פוקח עיוורים. The reason for that is that the power of sight connects us to the world around us. One year, when I was visiting Israel, my children encouraged me to go visit a place in Tel Aviv, called the Blind Museum. and I thought that would be an unbelievable idea. The fact is I couldn't get an appointment and I came home quite disappointed. One night, I decided all was not lost. I was going to try something on my own. When everybody was sleeping, I turned off all the lights in my house. I made my way to the back room in my basement, closed my eyes tight, and tried to navigate from that point to my bed, which was two floors above. I was shocked to learn that it would take me about 15 to 20 minutes to do so. I would bump into literally every piece of furniture on the way, even though I had navigated my house tens of thousands of times. When I finally opened my eyes and touched the pillow on my bed, I knew that I would never make the Bracha of פוקח עיוורים the same ever again. The power of sight is powerful, and the reality is that in every power that has the ability to create, it also has the ability to destroy. The greater that power, the more those two abilities are magnified. I realized one day that as I walk down the street, I am succumbing to the very same test that Adam and Chava were subjected to, which led to the first Aveira. The pasuk says that it began with the Satan saying to Chava, Look at that tree. And that tree was delightful to her eyes. That same Satan is whispering in our ears, as we walk down the street, Look! Look over there. Look over there. When I walk down the street, I try to remind myself who's whispering in my ears. And that if I am using the power of sight to destroy, how can I expect it to be there for me when I need it to build?